For the numbers, Play Store tells me 40k users. Piracy is unstopabble, nothing I can do to prevent that.

— Joachim Vergès, Falcon Pro dev

The Falcon Pro users can be broke down into 40k legit users and 60k pirates. Already I can't understand $500+ smartphone owners that refuse to purchase great $1 app (most Android users around me and some cheap iOS users). So this is beyond my logic to take the risk of downloading a pirated copy (that is likely infected by an Android virus) of an impressive €0.79 app such as Falcon Pro.

These pirates are genuine morons. They not only don't pay to use Falcon Pro but also prevent Joachim Vergès from getting new legit users.

What is the best option for the Joachim? Implement his own authentication server that enable the legit user and blocks the pirates. If it's possible, have the pirates use "Falcon Pro pirated" tokens and revoke them with each software update... turning the pirated version into a time limited trial.

I don't see Twitter removing the 100k limit for Falcon Pro. But they could do something that is badly required: token expiration. Allow the developers to set an expiration on the tokens created by their app. So a token that was unused for n weeks should be pruned.

I wish Joachim will be able to find a viable solution soon. The best option would be for him to turn most of the pirates into customers. Bonne chance Joachim.

When a friend comes to me looking for an advise for a smartphone purchase, I point my finger at both the iPhone and the Nexus (vanilla Android). The main reason is because they get the security updates faster.

For example Apple released iOS6 last week. Withing 5 days it was deployed to over 100 millions devices. From the iPhone 3GS that was released in june 2009 to the 5 millions iPhone 5 sold over the launch week-end.

I have a couple of Samsung friends (Galaxy S2 and Galaxy Note) that are stuck with Android 2.3.3. Because for an obscure reason Samsung decided to cripple the Over The Air update capability of Android. The only way to update these phones is thru Samsung Kies.

The flaw

The default browser in Samsung TouchWiz interface is able to dial a call on its own. All you have to do is include a special command in a webpage to trigger a phone call on Samsung Galaxy smartphones. The number can be a regular one, a XXX expensive line or a command code.

This command code can display the phone IMEI (*#06#), wipe the entire phone memory (*2767*3855#) or more. So it is trivial to add a line in a website that will wipe all the visiting Samsung Galaxy smartphones.

The mitigation

The simplest way to mitigate this flaw is to install TelStop. TelStop registers as "tel:" handler. Which means that whenever a webpage tries to trigger your dialer TelStop intercept it. If the phone number is non standard, TelStop window will pop-up to warn you.

The solution

The only definitive solution is for Samsung to clean its mess and provide updates for its smarphones. The latest version of the Galaxy S3 using Android 4.0.4 is safe. For the older devices, you'll need to sync and update your phones using Samsung Kies.

Android dialer test

I posted "Android dialer test" on this blog. Opening this post will try to dials *#06# (USSG code to display the IMEI code).

Every once in a while, a friend/coworker asks me what Android apps she/he should use. Given the current rate of Android devices activations (1.3M per day), I decided to post a proper list.

I use a combination of Windows computers, Android/iOS tablets and an iPhone. I don't like data silos therefore most of my favorite apps are connected and kept in sync. I can add a new task in Astrid using Firefox then add more information on the tablet and complete it on the go while on the iPhone.

No brainers

Lastpass is hands down the most convenient and secure password manager.

As a premium Lastpass customer, I can access my password database on smartphones and tablets. On Lastpass, I store software licence keys, wifi WPA keys, secure notes and website credentials. I see Lastpass as the online secure part of my brain.

Evernote is the online part of my brain.

Price: free.

Sync: native.

Interoperability: web, iOS, Android and Windows Phone.

I keep notes and pictures on various subjects (home improvement, procedures, EULAs,...) . From the obscure commands line reminders, to the drills I need to replace... if I don't want to forget it, it goes into Evernote. The UI of Evernote for Android is on par with its iOS version.

It gives me fresh music on my computers, smarphone, tablets and Sonos devices. I'm a Spotify Premium customer since september 2009. Over the past 3 years, I never looked back... well worth the 10€/month. I usually end up purchasing my favorite Spotify albums from Amazon MP3.

I like Astrid because I can manage my tasks on the web, on Android and on iOS. I can also assign new tasks to friends who also use Astrid. Any.DO is a good contender but the notification bar shortcut doesn't compensate the lack of web interface. I used 2Do on iOS with its Toodledo sync but I can't justify the steep price on Android.

Dropbox is the ubiquitous cloud storage.

Price: free.

Sync: native.

Interoperability: web, iOS and Android.

Dropbox is not the best in the security department. The recently launched two factors logon is a step in the right direction. I mainly use Dropbox to store non sensitive files and sync other apps. If I need to access the MiFi manual, I know it is stored in my Dropbox. And being able to push a picture of my kids on my parents shared folder is priceless.

Productivity

Mindjet is a free mind mapper.

Price: free.

Sync: native and Dropbox.

Interoperability: web, iOS and Android.

I spent a few euros on the app when it was called Thinking Space. It is far from being as sexy and usable as iThoughts/iThoughtsHD on iOS. The rather static layout is what bugs me the most. I'm still in quest for a great mind mapper for Android... but so far the free Mindjet is hard to beat.

Business Calendar shows a lot more information than the default Calendar.

Price: 4.75€ (0.69€ during the end of summer sales).

Sync: NA.

Interoperability: NA.

The official Jelly Bean calendar works OK. Business Calendar is just better. The weekly, monthly and agenda views are more efficient. And the scrollable agenda widget is a real blessing. At the full retail price, I would think twice... but I got it for 0.69€.

Audio and Video

Amazon MP3 is my number one source of MP3 audio files.

Price: free.

Sync: NA.

Interoperability: NA.

Before october 25th 2012, Amazon Europe will offer the Amazon Cloud Player. This service will allow to access over the air all previously purchased track for free. And for less than 25€ you'll be able to store your own 250 000 audio tracks in the Amazon Cloud Player. The service is available on web browsers, Android, iOS and Sonos devices.

Doggcatcher simply the best podcast manager on Android.

Price: 3.97€.

Sync: NA.

Interoperability: NA.

Stitcher turns your audio podcasts into a virtual streaming radio.

Price: free.

Sync: native.

Interoperability: web, iOS and Android.

If you don't mind losing a bit on quality, Stitcher will turn your favorite audio podcasts into a 3G/WiFi streamable feed. I prefer listening to my podcast in their maximum quality. I use Stitcher only when I'm on a bandwidth constrained situation.

TuneIn Radio Pro is the reference for online radio listening. It powers the Sonos devices. I went for the pro version to support the developers (0.70€). I'll probably never use the pro features.

IMDb is my favorite example of tablets use case. While watching a movie, I whip out a tablet and query IMDb to check where I saw that face. Within less than 60 seconds, the information is fetched and processed.